The Obama Administration got nowhere creating jobs with its green energy initiatives. But thanks to Obamacare, one industry might yet experience a boom — medical tourism. If the double whammy of Obamacare, which will be fully up and running in 2014, and a rapidly aging population creates pronounced health-care shortages, more and more Americans may soon start looking abroad for fast, affordable and effective treatments for all sorts of medical problems. H/T Reason

Brazilian prostitutes are hitting the classrooms to bone up on English in preparation for an expected influx of tourists coming for the World Cup and the Olympics. That begs the question: Will tourists trolling the hotspots of Rio seek out the most endowed Brazilian prostitutes or the most cunning linguists?

It may be several months before the National Park Service is able to reopen the Statue of Liberty following storm-related damage caused by Hurricane Sandy. The landmark is one of New York’s most popular tourist attractions, visited by four million annually. The one saving grace: The hurricane did not cause significant damage to the statue itself, only to walkways, outbuildings, docks and mechanical infrastructure that can all be repaired.

Adventure tourism is big business in New Zealand. About 40 percent of all foreign travelers to the nation will try out an extreme sport during their stay. This report surveys the landscape and the many adventures — bungee jumping, mountain climbing, skiing, rafting, ballooning, base jumping and other strenuous, sometimes dangerous activities. H/T Journeyman Pictures

Once a linchpin of the country’s economy, Egyptian tourism has taken a major hit since the overthrow of Hosni Mubarak. Travelers have been afraid to visit Egypt because of the ongoing turmoil and uncertainty that continue to plague the nation. Now, Islamic fundamentalists are placing even more obstacles in the way of a tourism rebound — threatening to impose restrictions on what kinds of clothes tourists can wear and dictate how they must behave. Some radicals even want the Pyramids covered. Fouad Hady from Australia’s SBS Dateline reports.

After Laos opened its doors for tourism in the 1990s, Vang Vieng emerged as a favorite destination for backpackers. The partying never stopped, fueled by bars, internet cafes and a series of water slides, rope swings and zip lines along the Nam Song River. But the fun got so out of control that several drunken tourists met accidental deaths, leading to a government crackdown on the party culture. David O’Shea from Australia’s Dateline SBS reports.